Many slidable connectors for suspending curtains or other drapery from support structures, such as I-beams or rails, have been developed over the years of which U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,877,984, 2,848,735, 3,262,148, 3,346,227, 3,359,592, 3,378,879, 3,815,174, French Pat. No. 1,435,653, German Pat. Nos. 1,222,632 and 1,965,044, and British Pat. Nos. 858,236 and 869,610 are examples.
However no structure is known to the applicant which has satisfied the demand for a drapery glide which can be easily assembled or disassembled to a beam both before and after the beam is installed, and, after installation on the beam, is virtually unloosenable by application of generally downwardly applied loads thereto.
For example, some glides are only assembleable to a beam prior to installation. As a result, if it is desired to assemble additional glides to an installed beam, or to remove some or all of the glides in place on an installed beam, it is necessary to disassemble the beam from its base structure.
Other glides require specially contoured beams. Still others are relatively complicated in a mechanical sense in that they are composed of two or more parts, or are structurally intricate and thus, frequently, lack sufficient ruggedness, particularly when made from relatively inexpensive raw material. Such constructions frequently do not lend themselves to modern day mass, low cost production methods, such as extrusion forming.
Accordingly a primary object of this invention is to provide a simple, one-piece construction rail glide which can be assembled or disassembled to a beam or rail at any location thereon either prior to or after installation of the beam or rail to its base structure, such as a wall.
Another object is to provide a rail glide as above-described which is ideally adapted to fabrication by modern, low-cost mass production methods, including extrusion forming.
A further object is to provide a rail glide as above-described which, after installation, is virtually unloosenable despite application of overloads throughout a wide arc of application.
Yet a further object is to provide a rail glide as above described in which heavy, downwardly applied loads tend to increase the tightness of connection between the rail glide and the beam up to the limit of structural deformation of one component or the other.
Yet a further object is to provide a beam or rail glide assembly composed of a rail glide and a supporting member, such as a beam or rail, having all of the features above described.
Other objects and advantages will become apparent from a study of the detailed description of the invention.